Is your Church your Family??
Luke 8:19–21 (ESV)
19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd.
20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.”
21 But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”
So what is family??
Today we live in a world where family is disconnected, dysfunctional, broken, divorced, absent and even abusive. We live in a world where, when you say family to some, it brings a rush of horrible memories, hurt, anger and sadly for some, no memories at all!
So when we say that the church is a family, what are we even talking about??? Well on this September day, I want you to look to your left and right, because for you, this is family!!
Does it feel like family???
· Does it feel like a business?
o Are you trying to get at much as you can for as little as you can?
o You don’t pick up your trash when you leave.
o You leave the counters in the coffee bar or the bathroom a mess.
o Do you just get your coffee, flop your butt in a chair, and leave when you're done?
o Do you complain about things in the church?
§ Are you the one that knows every fault in the church?
§ Are you the person that sees every mistake that everyone makes?
If I just described you then this is not your family, it’s a business!
· When it feels like family.
o You're giving way more than you're getting (in time and money)
o You stick around after church and pick up the trash that everyone else leaves behind
o You straighten up when you're done
o You are walking around talking to new faces and making feel welcome
o You don’t complain, you do!
§ If it's broke, you fix it.
§ If someone is struggling, you pray for them and try and help.
You do all this, because this is your family.
· Yes, they're annoying.
· Yes, they get on your last nerve.
· Yes, they hurt you sometimes.
o But in your family, you always come back, you always try, and you always invest.
So now you ask HOW do I make this church feel like family? Here are three things that will help you get plugged in and engaged in your family!
1. Serve
1 Corinthians 12:12 (ESV)
12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.
Are you waited on or served??
· You want to be in the family, you have to stop being served and start serving others.
· That’s what your Savior did!
· He said I come to serve, not be served
· He washed feet, feed the homeless, calmed the storm, healed the broken, comforted many, and transformed His family.
· What are you doing for yours??
· I am not talking about doing things that make you look good, I'm talking about things that help others.
Why serve first??
Luke 22:27 (ESV)
27 For who is the greater, one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? But I am among you as the one who serves.
· First that’s what your Savior did.
· And what better way to get to know your family than to serve next to them.
· Get plugged in!
o Find a team and get on it.
o Look for a upcoming project and show up.
o Stop hiding behind the it's to big, or I don’t know anyone.
o Talk to the team leader, talk to the lay pastor.
o It amazes me to see people and their attitudes when they are truly serving in the church Vs folks who don’t.
o Their lives are better, their marriages are stronger, and they have folks to turn to.
2. Learning Together, worshiping together, loving together, and hoping together!
· How much does your life currently allow you to develop relationships that are deep enough to help you grow and change?
· What are some common obstacles that hinder redemptive relationships from developing in our lives?
· Consider the following list and ask yourself if any of them apply to you:
o The busyness of life, keeping relationships distant and casual.
o A total immersion in friendships that are activity-and happiness-based.
o A conscious avoidance of close relationships as too scary or messy.
o A formal commitment to church activities, with no real connection to people.
o One-way, ministry-driven friendships in which you always minister to others, but never allow others to minister to you.
o Self-centered, “meet my felt needs” relationships that keep you always receiving, but seldom giving.
o A private, independent, “just me and God” approach to the Christian life.
o Theology as a replacement for relationship. Knowing God as a life of study, rather than the pursuit of God and his people.
· Do any of these apply?
· Think about your closest relationships: What needs to change so that you can form more meaningful relationships with the people who are already in your life?
American culture may idolize the Lone Ranger and Superman as heroes who right wrongs and ride out of town alone, but that solitary approach to life and change is utterly foreign to Scripture. In fact, the Bible sees it as weakness rather than strength! The person of character, according to Scripture, will have genuine friendships and be a genuine friend. After all, isn’t that the essence of the second great commandment to “love your neighbor”? When we are adopted into God’s family, we have many new brothers and sisters to love!
Loving people isn’t easy!!!!
Being involved with people is
· time consuming,
· messy,
· and complicated.
So what does all this mean??
· That means we will have to make time for these kinds of friendships.
· We will have to be realistic too.
· Close relationships make it more likely that you will sin against someone or that someone will sin against you.
· There will need to be times of confession and forgiveness .
· There will be times when you will need to serve someone, even though you feel you lack the resources.
· There will also be times when you will be served!
These are the very reasons why community is such a big part of God’s plan to transform us into the image of Christ. Living in community pushes us to die to ourselves. There will be times when loving others, and allowing others to serve, and love us will feel like death, but this is the pathway to real life in Christ. The more we understand our own hearts, the more we see that it takes a work of God’s grace to transform self-absorbed individuals into a community of love. Being in redemptive relationships shows us our need for change and helps bring it about!
3. We Give! That’s right, I’m talking about money, Benjamin’s, cheddar, green backs!
Acts 2:45 (ESV)
45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.
So why Give??
· Obedience.
· It all belongs to God anyway.
· What better way to figure that out than to give to Him first?
What does Jesus say about it???
· First fruit
o The first check you make out.
o The first penny you spend goes to Him through His church.
· Cheerfully
o Give with a glad heart.
o Give gladly knowing God is in control and will use it for His good.
o I use to take $75 bibles to jail.
· Sacrificially
o You give something up.
o For a single mom $5 is a lot.
o For some 10% is nothing.
o You need to give something.
· Regularly
o Not when the church finally does something right in your eyes.
o Not when you have extra.
o But on a regular basis (weekly, monthly, whatever it looks like to you).
Ultimately, it’s used to reach the lost, from coffee, to lights, to sound, to arena events, to bibles for the kids. It's all used to reach the lost!
Do you even know the needs of your church? I do.
· Church Debit approximately $400,000
· Kids Church
o Media
o Tables
o Chairs
o That all will cost around $15,000.00.
· Office
o Do you know we don’t have a office in this church?
o No place to counsel folks?
o That would cost $25,000.00.
· And the miscellaneous stuff
o Chairs
o Finish stage
o Finish enclosing the ceiling in the foyer
o Say another $20,000.00.
· We need to pay our debt down so we can put more money in our kids, arena, community.
And you say that’s impossible, right!!
Lets do the math!
So lets say we need $500,000.00 (WOWOWOWOW)
· Lets say we have 250 families attending, we all agree that sounds fair, right??
· So lets say these 250 families want to pay off that in 2 years time.
· That’s $83.00 dollars a month over and above what you are giving now!
· Doesn’t sound like much now, does it??
· Lets break it down further.
· That’s 16 $5 value meals a month per family.
· Or 41 $1.99 sodas.
· Or $2.76 a day.
How crazy is that? So my question to you is, what is one soul worth???? In your family, you give to help the family meet its goal! To meet its needs.
We have a building pay off campaign. How much have you given over and above what you normally give to help us continue to do what God has called us all to do???
God won’t provide you with everything you want, but He will cover your needs when you’re obedient to him!
So you don’t think family is important? Think again!
God wants you and needs you to be a part of His big old messed up family! For you to learn and grow, to love and laugh. We will never be perfect, we will disappoint you and hurt you, but just like my family growing up, we will always be there for you! So jump on in to the old Station Wagon and lets take her for a spin!!!
